Chương 69: Massacre

Half an hour later, the final match of the day was ready to begin. Lord Ars rose from the imperial balcony, holding what appeared to be an entire deep-fried unicorn on a spit.

"I hope you're all ready!" His voice boomed across the arena.

"This is going to be a big one!" He bit down on the unicorn's head. Horn and all. The crowd cheered as the reinforced balcony groaned beneath him.

"We've already seen the kind of show a Helheim general can put on." Ars swallowed.

"But now, imagine one of those generals facing an imperial princess!" The arena erupted. Ars pointed toward the right-side gate.

"First, the General of Life!" The heavy gate opened.

"The woman who commands the military might of Helheim!" A figure stepped onto the sand.

"I give you Amber Hallow!" Amber entered wearing a full set of purple armor. A carved pumpkin covered her face like a helmet, its jagged mouth glowing faintly from within. In each hand, she carried a large gardening scythe. The curved blades dragged lightly through the sand as she walked. Amber glanced toward the stands.

"It's a shame Cyrus can't watch my match." She pouted beneath the pumpkin. Then her grip tightened around the scythes.

"It's fine." Her voice brightened.

"The head of a princess should cheer me up." Several spectators near the arena floor went silent. Ars laughed as if she had made a joke. Then he pointed toward the opposite gate.

"And on the left…" Crimson banners unfurled across the stands.

"The youngest of Valor's seven children!" The imperial section of the audience rose to its feet.

"Born as the Demi-God of Torture!" The second gate opened.

"Princess Josephine Crest!" The crowd went wild. Josephine stepped into the arena with the poise of someone entering a ballroom rather than a battlefield. Long blonde hair flowed down her back, perfectly arranged despite the desert wind. Her crimson eyes settled on Amber with open disgust. She wore an elegant pink dress made from expensive fabric, decorated with pearls and golden thread. A long whip rested in her hand. Josephine stopped several paces away from Amber.

"Please don't take this personally." Her voice was sweet. Condescending.

"Father asked me to humiliate you in front of everyone." Amber's fingers twitched around her scythes. Josephine smiled.

"The other two generals barely made it into the tournament." Her gaze moved over Amber's armor.

"How pathetic." The air around Amber changed. The sand near her feet darkened as thin roots began to crawl beneath the surface. Still, her voice remained calm.

"I'll give you the first attack." Josephine raised an eyebrow. Amber lowered both scythes.

"Then I'll end this afterward." The glow within her pumpkin mask brightened.

"So make it count." Josephine's smile thinned. Amber tilted her head.

"I should warn you." The roots beneath the arena spread farther.

"Of Helheim's Seven Generals…" She raised one scythe and pointed it toward the princess.

"In terms of raw power, I rank second." Josephine's expression changed slightly. Amber's voice remained steady.

"Only Nox's father stands above me." The arena fell silent. Amber crossed her scythes.

"So go ahead, Princess." If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The carved grin of her pumpkin mask burned brighter.

"Show me how the Demi-God of Torture begs." Josephine's face twisted with rage.

"Arrogant bitch!" She cracked her whip against the sand.

"I'll carve you up so badly that four-eyed loser will never want to look at you again!" Amber went still. The glow inside her mask intensified. Josephine raised her arm.

"Ability Activate—Crush!" The whip tore through the air. It wrapped around Amber's arm and struck the purple armor with a sharp crack. The moment it made contact, the metal collapsed inward. Bone shattered beneath it. Amber's arm was crushed instantly, twisted inside the ruined sleeve. The crowd gasped. Josephine smiled triumphantly.

"Regret giving me the first attack yet?" Amber looked down at her destroyed armor. Then sighed.

"I liked this set." Josephine's smile vanished. Her crimson eyes burned with fury as she raised the whip again.

"You—""Excuse me." Amber's voice remained calm.

"I believe I said I would only give you the first attack." Josephine froze. Amber tilted her pumpkin-covered head.

"Then I would end it." Josephine stared at her in confusion. She lifted her arm, preparing to strike again. Then she coughed. Blood sprayed from her mouth. Josephine staggered. Her whip fell from her hand as another violent cough tore through her body. She gripped her throat, eyes widening as a burning pain spread through her neck and chest. She looked down at the blood staining her palm. Tiny green specks floated within it. Mold.

"What…" Josephine choked.

"What the hell did you do?" Her legs weakened. Pain spread through her veins like roots forcing their way through flesh. Amber began walking toward her. Her crushed arm hung uselessly at her side, yet she showed no sign of discomfort.

"Torture is something I'm quite familiar with as well." Josephine stumbled backward. Amber dragged one gardening scythe through the sand.

"Perhaps it's better Cyrus isn't here to watch this." Josephine continued coughing, blood spilling between her fingers as the green specks within it slowly spread. Amber stopped in front of her.

"I find criminals become far more cooperative once their internal organs begin transforming into plants." Her tone remained calm. Almost conversational.

"It usually takes quite a bit of preparation. Most intelligent fighters notice the poison hidden within the surrounding mana before it reaches their bloodstream." Amber bowed her head slightly.

"So thank you for spending so much time talking about how you planned to break me." Josephine's face twisted in pain.

"Damn you…" She tried to stand, but her legs buckled beneath her.

"It hurts." Her breathing became shallow.

"You can't do this to me." She glared up at Amber.

"I'm a princess." Amber tilted her pumpkin-covered head.

"My ability is called The Gardener." Thin roots shifted beneath the sand around Josephine.

"It allows me to transform the world into nature." Josephine's eyes widened.

"So far, I've only converted the oxygen within your blood into mold." Amber's voice never changed.

"But I've heard slowly suffocating from the inside is quite painful." She kicked Josephine in the chest. The princess hit the ground hard, coughing up another mouthful of blood. Amber stood over her.

"Please surrender." Josephine looked up at her with genuine fear. There was no anger in Amber's voice. No excitement. No cruelty. That was what made her terrifying. She was hurting Josephine with the same detached focus someone might use while trimming weeds.

"Never, you bi—" Amber stepped on her arm. Bone snapped. Josephine screamed. Amber leaned closer.

"Please understand something." Her voice dropped low enough that only Josephine could hear.

"We in Helheim are not nearly as naive as your Emperor assumes." Josephine's breath caught.

"For example…" The glow within Amber's pumpkin mask narrowed.

"We are fully aware that he arranged the death of our king." Josephine stared at her. Amber straightened.

"It truly is unfortunate that his daughter was so terribly crippled during a friendly exchange between nations." She turned away.

"But accidents happen." Amber glanced back once.

"I'm sure that's how you were born." Then she began walking toward the arena exit. Josephine lay trembling in the sand. Her whip rested several feet away. Her body refused to move. Lord Ars leaned forward from the imperial balcony, staring in disbelief.

"Just…" He lowered the fried unicorn.

"Just like that?" The crowd remained silent.

"She's down?" Josephine's face twisted with hatred. With one final burst of strength, she forced herself upright. She charged toward Amber from behind, her remaining hand reaching for the general's head.

"Crush!" Amber did not turn. Roots burst from Josephine's unbroken arm. They tore through flesh and bone, twisting outward in a violent bloom. Her arm was severed completely. Josephine collapsed. This time, she did not rise.

"What's wrong? Are you not entertained?" The arena remained silent. Ars stared down at the blood-soaked sand. Then slowly raised one hand.

"The winner…" His voice lacked its usual excitement.

"Amber Hallow." A scattered cheer began in the Helheim section. Then it spread throughout the arena. Amber stopped near the gate and turned toward the crowd.

"I look forward to facing my next opponent." She bowed politely.

"And I sincerely apologize that this match could not end less brutally." The carved grin of her pumpkin mask glowed.

"My opponent was simply so formidable that I could not afford to hold back." Then Amber walked through the gate. The moment she disappeared, healers and imperial guards rushed onto the field. They surrounded Josephine, desperately trying to stop the bleeding and remove the roots spreading through her body. High above them, the imperial banners hung motionless. Helheim had been invited to Lævateinn so it could be humiliated. Instead, the Emperor's youngest daughter had been left broken in the sand.